Scripps PRSSA Professional Mentor Program: A Guide for First-Time Mentees

Hello everyone! My name is Emily O’Flynn and I’m excited to tell you about how to get the most out of the Scripps PRSSA Professional Mentor Program. Because I’m your VP of External Relations, I am in charge of the program and want to make sure you’re utilizing the opportunity as much as possible.

Being a first-time mentee can be a little intimidating. I mean, you don’t even know this random person I matched you with and now you’re expected to form a professional relationship with them? If you’re a mentee, you will have already been matched to a professional mentor in the public relations/advertising/marketing/communications field. Here is a brief guide as to how to make the transition a bit smoother.

Ask the right questions.

If you’re a first-time mentee, you may be thinking to yourself, ‘I don’t even know what questions to ask.’ I matched mentors to mentees on two main criteria: location and the mentor’s career path. Common questions you can ask pertaining to their transition to what location they chose to work in, what led them to their current position, what does their average day at work look like, etc. If you need more help coming up with questions, please refer to the following links:

Your mentor is excited to help you! Even if your interests don’t directly align with your mentor match, you should still be upfront about what your goals are. I promise it won’t hurt their feelings, and they will probably be able to help you with steps to reach the goals. Also, they may have contacts in the industry that you do want to enter!

Be prepared for next steps.

Overall, your mentor is thrilled to help you out. They are excited to give back to the Bobcat Fam by spreading their wisdom and experiences thus far in the field. Each relationship is different, but if you didn’t go over your resume/LinkedIn in your first call/meet-up, then that might be a great way to continue your conversation. Additionally, internship/job recruitment season is approaching, so I’m sure your mentor would love to assist you in writing an impressive resume.

I’m really psyched that you chose to be in this program! If you aren’t in this program and after reading this blog you’d like to join, please let me know! If you are a Scripps PRSSA dues-paying member, I’d love to match you with a professional. I really want you to cultivate a meaningful relationship with your mentor, so let me know if you have any questions about how to do that in addition to this blog!

Emily O’Flynn is a senior Journalism-Strategic Communication major. She is the current Vice President of External Relations for Scripps PRSSA. You can keep up with her on Twitter @OFlynn_Emily